SapphireHunter
Rough_Rock
- Joined
- Jan 27, 2015
- Messages
- 15
Hi all,
I am looking for a Sapphire engagement ring because my girlfriend does NOT like diamonds for a variety of reasons (ethical, financial, dislike of the diamond/de Beers marketing). As a result, I am pretty confident that a solitaire sapphire on a white gold or platinum ring with no accent diamonds is the way to go, but I still have a few questions and was wondering if any experts wanted to chime in with advice.
1. Size/Budget: My friend group has seen several engagements in the last year or so that I was involved in the ring selection for. My girlfriend was pretty shocked when I told her Friend A spent $8k and Friend B spent $5k on their diamond engagement rings (have I mentioned how awesome she is? Horrified is too strong of a word to describe her reaction, but she definitely was not jealous, lol). If I had to guess, I think her expectation of a reasonable budget is more in the $2k range, but I also don’t think she knows exactly what that means in terms of size/quality. She’s not the type to compare her ring to somebody else’s and feel badly about it, but I definitely want to avoid having her friends give her sympathetic looks too. So bottom line, I don’t have a defined budget and have been looking at stones in the 5-8 mm range. Any thoughts on solitaires of that size?
2. Cut: Is a particular cut recommended for Sapphire solitaire engagement rings? Based on my online searches so far I have seen a lot of round and oval cut Sapphires, but personally I have a slight aesthetic preference for the more rectangular cuts (radiant, emerald-cut, cushion, etc). I have no idea what her preference is and I don’t want to ask because I am planning for it to be a surprise. Thoughts or recommendations?
3. Ethical sourcing/BrilliantEarth.com: I would love to be able to tell my girlfriend that I bought from a retailer committed to ethical sourcing like Brilliant Earth. Unfortunately, Brilliant Earth doesn’t have much variety when it comes to cuts. They have mostly round, oval, and a single 6x6 mm cushion cut option. Are there any other retailers committed to ethical sourcing that I should check out? Does Brilliant Earth have a good reputation when it comes to the color, clarity, and overall quality of their gems?
Of course, any other advice would be welcome too. Thanks so much for your help.
I am looking for a Sapphire engagement ring because my girlfriend does NOT like diamonds for a variety of reasons (ethical, financial, dislike of the diamond/de Beers marketing). As a result, I am pretty confident that a solitaire sapphire on a white gold or platinum ring with no accent diamonds is the way to go, but I still have a few questions and was wondering if any experts wanted to chime in with advice.
1. Size/Budget: My friend group has seen several engagements in the last year or so that I was involved in the ring selection for. My girlfriend was pretty shocked when I told her Friend A spent $8k and Friend B spent $5k on their diamond engagement rings (have I mentioned how awesome she is? Horrified is too strong of a word to describe her reaction, but she definitely was not jealous, lol). If I had to guess, I think her expectation of a reasonable budget is more in the $2k range, but I also don’t think she knows exactly what that means in terms of size/quality. She’s not the type to compare her ring to somebody else’s and feel badly about it, but I definitely want to avoid having her friends give her sympathetic looks too. So bottom line, I don’t have a defined budget and have been looking at stones in the 5-8 mm range. Any thoughts on solitaires of that size?
2. Cut: Is a particular cut recommended for Sapphire solitaire engagement rings? Based on my online searches so far I have seen a lot of round and oval cut Sapphires, but personally I have a slight aesthetic preference for the more rectangular cuts (radiant, emerald-cut, cushion, etc). I have no idea what her preference is and I don’t want to ask because I am planning for it to be a surprise. Thoughts or recommendations?
3. Ethical sourcing/BrilliantEarth.com: I would love to be able to tell my girlfriend that I bought from a retailer committed to ethical sourcing like Brilliant Earth. Unfortunately, Brilliant Earth doesn’t have much variety when it comes to cuts. They have mostly round, oval, and a single 6x6 mm cushion cut option. Are there any other retailers committed to ethical sourcing that I should check out? Does Brilliant Earth have a good reputation when it comes to the color, clarity, and overall quality of their gems?
Of course, any other advice would be welcome too. Thanks so much for your help.